The new discovery of a grave made of limestone allegedly containing a wooden coffin with an integral human skeleton inside the Kasta Hill tomb in Amphipolis, Greece, brings archaeologists closer to solving the mystery of the person buried in the monument.
The grave was found 1.60 meters beneath the third chamber floor. The outer dimensions are 3.23 meters by 1.56 meters and inside the grave there is a hollow part 0.54 meters wide and 2.35 meters long. It is estimated that the height of the grave was 1.80 meters. Also, the total height from bottom to ceiling is 8.90 meters.
Archaeologists have informed journalists that inside the grave there was a wooden coffin containing a whole human skeleton. The implication of the coffin derives from the fact that inside the grave there were about 20 iron and copper nails and several coffin decorations made of bone and glass.
Inside the grave, the human skeleton found was almost intact. The skeleton will be transferred to a laboratory for a DNA test to determine the sex and age of the dead.
According to the Ministry of Culture, the Kasta hill burial monument is the biggest ever built in Macedonia, made of the largest quantity of marble ever used. It is an extremely expensive public work, impossible to have been funded by a civilian.
It is certain that the person buried inside the tomb was considered a hero at the time. He or she was a prominent member of Macedonian society of the time. This is the only explanation considering the tremendous cost of the monument.
According to officials, Minister of Culture Kostas Tasoulas will give a press conference on November 22 at the Amphipolis Museum to talk about the findings and the next stage of works at the Kast hill monument.
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